Stay
by Kavbj
Summary: "There is nothing left in him. His energy has been sapped and it shows in the way he is slumped against the wall. Hair is falling loose from his ponytail and his eyes are closed. His face is pale and gaunt and Lavi hopes for Yuu's sake that this is the worst it is going to get." Kanda chooses to trust and Lavi stops making false promises. (A bit of squinty LaviYuu I suppose.)


**I'm alive! See, see, see! I am, I really am! And better yet, I'm on holidays, yewww. This little thingy came out of nowhere-ish... I had a stomach bug for a couple of days and I think things sort of just went from there. Bit of personal writing experimentation going on in this oneshot, so lemme know what you think!**

**~Kavbj**

* * *

_**Stay**_

The pouring rain makes it hard to see. Thunder grumbles angrily and lightning splits the sky. Despite this, small fires continue to burn. The town is grey and ruined, the ground littered with carnage and piles of ash. Street carts are knocked over. Market stalls are destroyed, their produce flung messily across the cobblestoned streets.

Kanda grunts as he's thrown back against the brick wall of the small town hall. He draws a foot up and presses it flat to the wall, does the same with both his hands, and prepares to launch himself off of the foundation, but the Akuma is Level 3 and fast, and it pins him to the bricks before he gets the chance to retaliate. It laughs giddily at him as it takes him by the throat and lifts him higher. The fingers on one of Kanda's hands scrabble for some sort of purchase on the bricks, while the fingers on the others struggle to wrap properly around Mugen's hilt. The cold has made his fingers numb and uncooperative.

'Waah~ Mr Exorcist. Such a valiant fight indeed,' it coos at him. 'How's 'bout I give you a reward for your efforts before I blast you to pieces? I promise you'll enjoy it~!'

It lifts its other hand to his face and pries his jaw open, though Kanda growls and shakes his head and uses what feels like the last of his strength to stop it from happening. But, slowly and with effort, the Akuma succeeds, and forces a glowing orb of light past the barrier of Kanda's lips and teeth. It then forces Kanda's jaw shut and holds it closed. When Kanda fights back even more strongly, it covers the whole of the Exorcist's mouth and nose, until Kanda has no choice but to swallow or else be suffocated.

'Very good, Mr Exorcist! Did you enjoy it? I promised you you would, didn't - '

Kanda stumbles as he's dropped back to his feet and the Akuma explodes. Panting, he leans forward and braces his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath. His hair is a wet and tangled mess as he it hangs around his shoulders. Inhaling deeply, he stands up straight and sheathes Mugen. He manages all of two steps before whatever it is that the Akuma shoved down his throat (there had been reports of poisoning and blood and pain and ultimately death and it was a horrid way to go by the sounds of it) made its presence properly known.

Doubling over, Kanda's eyes go wide as he chokes out a hoarse cry and clutches at his stomach. He presses harder and harder, as if he can force the burning agony out of his system. It's burning his internal organs. It has to be acid or - black stars begin to tarnish the expanse of his skin and he falls to his knees with a groan.

* * *

He bullies some lanky, freckled kid into giving him a first class cabin with a private bathroom, then convinces his Finder to go raid the train's built-in restaurant, as they haven't eaten anything since who knows when. Though the man looks confused and concerned, he nods and scampers off, no doubt terrified of being on the receiving end of Kanda's wrath. Once he is gone, Kanda slams the door shut and moves to lock it, but thinks otherwise. He tosses his stuff down, strips quickly out of his uniform because damn it, it is way too hot, and drags himself to the bathroom.

This time, he does lock the door.

He braces himself against the sink and stares at his reflection. Under the lights, it is easy to see how clammy his skin has become. The colour is slowly seeping out of his cheeks and a fine layer of sweat coats his face. His stomach has been doing flips for the past couple of hours and his regenerative abilities have been of no help at all.

Sighing loudly, he splashes his face with water and hangs his head. He'll be meeting Lavi soon. The train swings past the town the redhead is posted at, and they'll be returning to the Order together. So, really, all he has to do is fight this off until he's home, and then fuck he can't wait to crawl into his own bed and do something about the dry, stabbing pain in his gut.

* * *

Halfway on their way to Lavi, Kanda finds himself curled up between the sink and the toilet, cheek pressed to the cool tiled wall and bare feet tucked under him. He's unbuttoned the top of his dress shirt and rolled up the cuffs of his slacks, but he can't seem to cool down. He can't seem to keep the contents of his stomach down, either.

The nausea is a pain in the ass, even more than the puking. At least once he's thrown up, he feels all right for a good 20, 30 minutes. The nausea lingers like an unwanted… Moyashi. An unwanted Moyashi, that's what it is. The dizziness is worse because it makes him feel more nauseous and its a cruel and unusual circle that goes round and round and round and - fuck, he's going to puke again.

Groaning, Kanda forces himself to his knees and tried to engage his gag reflex so he can get it over and done with. His mouth feels weird and he spits into the toilet bowl compulsively. He gags, not by his own hand this time, and his whole body rocks and tenses with the motion. It strains his throat and jaw and he decides it's a horrible feeling and he'd much rather suffer the pain of having a broken arm fix itself. He gags again and it leaves him panting, because every single muscle locks when it happens, including those in his throat. His oesophagus and airway both become tight and it feels like all of his insides are trying to work their way up and out of his mouth.

Finally, it hits and it makes his body shake and tense and, unlike when it first happened and he couldn't stop his fingers from clawing at the toilet, he manages to force his shoulders and mind to relax enough to hold his ponytail out of the way and to mentally instruct himself _breathe_. It's all so confusing. Half of him wants to panic instinctively, though he is not a child and vomiting is not something to panic about, but hell he's so over this already and he just wants to beg his body to give him a rest and fuck that Akuma. The other half of him is calm and rational and waits it out.

When it's over, his face is hot and his hands are shaking and he feels a little weak. Sighing loudly, he flushes the toilet and drags himself to his feet with the assistant of the sink. It's become routine now, and when he looks in the mirror, the sight of eyes made red and watery by the strain is no surprise. He turns on the faucet and rinses his mouth once, twice, thrice, then takes one, two, three small sips of water. He pats his face with his damp hands then dries it off with the hand towel, then curls back up between the sink and the toilet, with his cheek pressed to the cool tiled wall and bare feet tucked under him.

* * *

Lavi whistles as he and his Finder walk down the aisle of the train. His mission went well. There were a couple of measly Level 2s and yeah, there were Level 1s because there's always Level 1s, but they were taken out fairly easily and the Innocence was obtained without a hitch. It helped that the report of Innocence had come through rather quickly, so the town was still largely in one piece and hadn't suffered too many casualties at the hands of the Akumas.

"Oh," Lavi says, coming to a slow halt as he recognises a Finder dozing in one of the restaurant booths. He must be with Yuu. "Sorry," Lavi says with a smile as the Finder jolts awake at his touch. "Mind if we join you? We're starving!"

"Of course, Master Lavi!" he exclaims, ushering them to sit. "How are you both? Did the mission go well?"

Lavi laughs and leans back in his seat. "We ran into a few Akuma but it was nothin' serious. Steve was great at pinning down the location of the Innocence, which made life nice 'n' easy! What about you'nd Yuu-Chan?"

Yuu's Finder shakes his head grimly. "It was terrible. There was no Innocence but there was a Level 3 causing trouble for the town. The town is now demolished. Those who could escape did so, but there were not many who managed to do so. Master Kanda spent a large part of the week helping the townspeople escape and fighting Akuma. The Level 3 did not show itself often and Master Kanda wasn't able to engage in proper battle with it until the end."

"Is Yuu all right?"

"I'm not sure," the Finder admits somewhat shamefully. He bows his head and fiddles with his napkin. "But I do not believe he is well. We have not eaten in sometime and so he sent me straight here once we got aboard, but he himself has not come out to eat."

Lavi nods slowly. "Where is Yuu-Chan?" he asks with a warm smile.

"In 1C."

"All right," Lavi says as he rises from his seat. He beams down at the two Finders. "Enjoy your meals! I'll go check on our precious Yuu-Chan~!"

* * *

Lavi lets himself into 1C slowly, knocking on the door so as to not startle the Japanese Exorcist. "Yuu?" he calls softly, in case he is sleeping, but the cabin is empty. However, Lavi sees that the bathroom door is shut and there is light coming from underneath. He tries the handle but finds it locked. "Yuu? It's me," he says. "Lemme in, Yuu."

He listens carefully. There's a moment of silence before he hear's Kanda shuffling about and then the click of the lock.

"Thanks, Yuu," Lavi says, sliding the door back. His eye widens fractionally. "Jesus, Yuu, y'look horrible."

Yuu sends him a weak glare. He's curled up between the toilet and the sink. His face is pale and sweaty, and his bangs are damp. His shirt hangs messily from his shivering frame. He opens his mouth to retort but only manages a pitiful groan before he squeezes his eyes shut and clutches at his stomach.

"Are you ok?" Lavi asks quietly, hurrying over to the other Exorcist. "Is it a stomach bug or an injury? Your Finder said you 'aven't eaten in some time so it can't be food poisoning."

Yuu tips his head back against the wall and stares at Lavi down the length of his nose. His lips are chapped and parted as his chest rises and falls with some effort. Lavi can see that he is weak and tired, and reaches out to brush Yuu's bangs back from his face.

"Y'have to tell me, Yuu, or I can't help ya."

Yuu swallows thickly. "Akuma," is all he manages.

"Poison?"

Yuu closes his eyes and nods slowly and jerkily.

"From an injury? It shouldn't be having this effect on you…" Lavi muses, brushing Yuu's fringe back again.

Yuu shakes his head. "I-Ingestion…"

Lavi blinks at him. "…_Ingestion_? How on earth did that happen?"

Yuu scowls and shakes head irritably. "It forced… s-something… down my… throat."

Lavi cusses under his breath and shifts closer to Yuu. "All right. All right. What -"

Yuu shoves him back and away then forces himself to his knees. Lavi is confused for a moment but then Yuu gags and starts dry heaving and he understands. He gently uncurls Yuu's fingers from around the length of his hair and takes that hand within his own, while he holds Yuu's hair back with the other. Yuu manages to flick his gaze up at the Bookman Junior for the briefest of moments but then another particularly strong heave steals his attention away again.  
"You're ok," Lavi murmurs, squeezing Yuu's hand and blowing cool air onto the back of his neck.

When it finally stops and Yuu sits there, eyes closed and chest heaving, Lavi guides him back to where he'd originally been curled up between the toilet and the sink then releases his hand. He stands and fills a glass with water, then kneels again and guides Yuu's shaking fingers around it. He helps him tip it to his lips.  
"Small sips," he instructs, keeping his voice courteously low by habit now. "If you're dry heaving with a bit of bile, it means you're not keepin your fluids up."

"I just throw it back up again," Yuu tells him hoarsely.

"I know," Lavi replies sympathetically. "I know, Yuu, but trust me, ok? This'll make it easier. Your throat probably hurts, right?"

Yuu nods and pushes the glass away.

"It's 'cause of the bile. Even if you're only throwin' up water, it'll help protect your throat a little bit more from the bile, ok?" Lavi reaches up blindly and carefully sets the glass on the counter. Then he tucks his legs under him and plants a hand on each of Yuu's knees and rubs them soothingly. "I'll stay."

He continues drawing random patterns on Yuu's folded knees until 10 minutes later, Yuu's eyes go wide and he chokes out a pained cry. Startled, Lavi draws back, and Yuu curls his arms around himself, draws his knees to his chest, and presses his forehead to his knees. He groans softly and digs his nails into his sides.

"Yuu?" Lavi asks, alarmed. He tries to get the Japanese Exorcist to sit up enough so that he can see his face but it doesn't work. "Yuu, what's wrong?"

Yuu shakes his head and squeezes his eyes shut. "It'll pass," he chokes out. "It'll pass…"

"All right," Lavi concedes, rubbing the other teen's back soothingly. "Tell me after."

And when it does pass, Yuu does tell him. "The poison is burning my internal organs," he says dryly, rubbing tiredly at his eyes with the palms of his hands. "My body keeps healing and then the poison burns them all over again."

Lavi winces because he has about 300 other definitions for 'fun'. "But why 'asn't your body healed from the poison all together? Akuma poison doesn't usually affect ya."

Yuu shrugs tiredly. "Not a damned clue."

* * *

An hour passes and it is clear that the poison isn't going. Lavi studies Yuu slowly, with a careful and methodical eye. He has thrown up another two times, and though he is resistant and petulant about it, he still drinks the water when told to. But there is a difference in his exhaustion now. Before he seemed tired out by the constant vomiting, appearing somewhat defeated and defenceless. Now he is weak simply because he is. There is nothing left in him. His energy has been sapped and it shows in the way he is slumped against the wall. Hair is falling loose from his ponytail and his eyes are closed. His face is pale and gaunt and Lavi hopes for Yuu's sake that this is the worst it is going to get.

"Yuu," Lavi calls softly. He takes each of Yuu's hands and runs his thumbs over the knuckles. "Yuu, hey, just listen t'me for a bit, yeah?"

Yuu's lashes flutter and he groans stubbornly. Though he shakes his head and squirms where he's sitting, he does finally open his eyes. He swallows thickly, face paling a little more, and Lavi stays quiet. Yuu gulps again and lifts their joint hands to press them to his forehead.

"Speak," he croaks.

"I think you need t'eat a little."

Yuu snorts and detangles their fingers. "You really are a Baka Usagi. I can't keep anything _down_. I can't even stand and the room keeps spinning and it looks like there are three of you and it's a fucking nightmare and even to myself I sound fucking delirious."

"Hear me out," Lavi says. "I'm gonna get you a couple of things to nibble at that shouldn't make you feel any worse - "

_"Shouldn't_."

"- And should help settle your stomach a little."

Yuu shakes his head.

"Trust me."

Yuu lifts his gaze to meet Lavi's and stares at him contemplatively. "I do…" he says at last.

Lavi wisely hides the impact of that statement. Instead, he says, "good." He pushes himself to his feet and brushes himself down. "I'll be back," he promises. Seeing Yuu start shivering now that Lavi's body warmth is gone, the redhead shrugs out of his uniform jacket and drapes it over Yuu. "You need t'stay warm, all right?" He moves to the door and looks over his shoulder as he promises again, "I'll be back."

Yuu nods sleepily and waves him off.

* * *

Kanda is drifting when Lavi returns. The touch of the redhead's hands on his startles him and he jerks his head back. His skull cracks against the tiles and he drops his head forward with a groan.

"Whatcha doin', Yuu-Chan?" the redhead teases lightly. His fingers massage the wounded area gently before they slip down to lift Kanda's head. "Ya can't risk losing any more brain cells."

Kanda manages to growl a threat, not that he's sure what he says or in what language. He feels light as air but his head feels heavy as lead. He watches blearily as Lavi sets down the items he has fetched. A bottle of apple juice, some saltine crackers, and ginger biscuits. He wrinkles his nose and pulls his head back.  
"I know ya don't like sweets," Lavi admits, cracking the seal on the apple juice. He tries to lift it to Kanda's lips but Kanda pulls away again. "Yuu," Lavi sighs, shooting the other man a look. "Trust me."

Kanda fixes the redhead with the same look from before. He doesn't like those words. They imply too much and he doesn't like that he can't not respond to them. Not saying anything doesn't work because actions give it all away too easily. Allen's pinned it on him before, when the whole camaraderie and friendship shit couldn't reach him the way the Moyashi wanted.

Shaking his head, he immediately regrets the motion. Forcing the redhead to put down the juice, Kanda takes those hands instead and squeezes, trying to ground himself. Lavi is real and warm and solid, different to the reality he keeps trying to perceive through the touch of the tiled floor. His fingers slip over Lavi's hand until he finds his pulse and he counts the heartbeats until his head has stopped spinning enough for him to -

Clenching his teeth, he bites down on another cry. Fucking acid. Fucking Akuma. Fucking regenerative abilities being a general _bitch_.

He presses their linked knuckles to his forehead and closes his eyes tightly. Maybe Lavi's fingers will be able to draw out this strange airy feeling. He presses harder, knowing it will bruise. Or maybe they can ground him and force something other than the painful heaviness inside his head.

Lavi retracts one hand and soon Kanda can sense it hovering near his lips. The smell of the apple juice is sickening but he can smell that Lavi is offering him the saltine crackers first.

"Eat, Yuu. Jus' nibble at it," Lavi murmurs.

And so Kanda does. And he takes a turn at the ginger biscuits too, and even the apple juice, despite how much the taste makes him cringe because sweets taste bad enough without his mouth already tasting like bile.

* * *

Kanda keeps it down for all of 10 minutes. As he gags, he can feel every ache in his chest and every strain of every muscle. His body is too tired to force it up and it takes a couple of tries. Lavi is beside him, too close, not near enough, too fucking hot but the cool air he blows on the back of his neck helps but sends shivers down his spine and he's shaking now and slipping, slipping, or is his view tilting and God, he's so tired and sore and over this shit, just please, let it stop, let him rest, no more, no more, no more.

"'M sorry, Yuu," Lavi whispers. The words ghost over his neck and Kanda gags agains, back arching as his shoulder blades pull together sharply. "'M sorry. I know, I know, but it'll help, I promise. It's all right."

Lavi twists his hand so that Kanda's hair wraps around his wrist. Both of them know the action is way too practiced from the all the times Lavi has played with Kanda's hair and as always, Kanda isn't grateful for the favour. But this time it's because his head is spinning with it as he pictures it and his knees slip on the tiles completely and now he really isn't sure what's happening but Lavi's arm is around his waist and the redhead is jamming their hips together and pulling him up against him and Kanda just can't -

"Yuu?" There's an urgency in Lavi's voice that Kanda knows is new because the redhead has been calm this whole time and now there's a problem, this is a problem, and his world is doing strange things again and he's lost all control of his senses because what is - "Yuu? Yuu, look at me. Look at me, Yuu."

Kanda does but it's a struggle because - his eyes must have stopped communicating with his brain because he can't make sense of what he's seeing and it's a strange out of body experience he supposes but things aren't in his control.

"Good," Lavi breathes. "Good, Yuu. Stay focused on me. Look at _me_. Ok?"

But he's _tired_ and this isn't fair that Lavi is making him stay awake and alert when it's so very obvious that he's fucking exhausted and a hundred percent done with this shit.

"No, Yuu, _don't_. Not yet, not yet. Stay here, stay with me."

Kanda isn't sure if Lavi is speaking too lowly or muttering to himself or if his hearing has failed but his eyes are working with him again and Lavi's lips are moving. Maybe he's only allowed one sense at a time.

No, that's a shit theory. He can still smell the fucking apple juice and -

"Sick," he croaks, pushing against Lavi. He does so more urgently when it feels like he's slammed back into his own body. Lavi is _too_ close, _too_ hot, and he can't breathe. "Lavi," he gasps, squeezing his eyes shut.

He's out of it again and Lavi has to call him back, force him to look at him again, and Kanda just wants it all to _stop_.

"Stop…" he pants, lashes fluttering. "Just stop, please."

* * *

Yuu closes his eyes again and Lavi swears again. "No, Yuu, _at me_. Look at me. Yuu!" he snaps, his voice tight.

The Japanese Exorcist is shaking so hard he's just short of convulsing and he's that delirious that Lavi's expecting him to start hallucinating soon. Which is why he wants Yuu to calm down and come back to him before falling asleep. He's not sure anymore how much the poison is affecting Yuu, and how much of it is just exhaustion and a lack of energy.

He pats Yuu's cheek. His skin is pale, sweaty and clammy. And cold. So very cold. He knows he's probably a furnace at the moment, and that would probably account for some of the reason that Yuu was so desperate to get away from him just before. But right now he's the only thing keeping Yuu up as they kneel pressed up against one another.

"Yuu, you have t'open your eyes, ya hear me? Lemme check you over and maybe you can eat a little more, and then you can sleep, all right?" He shakes his head when Yuu doesn't respond. Dammit, where is Bookman with his needles when Lavi needs him? "You wan' it to stop, right? It will, I promise. But first ya 'ave to open your eyes. Open your eyes, Yuu. _Yuu!_"

Yuu groans at him and his head rolls limply, but he opens his eyes. Lavi can see the struggle and breathes out a sigh of relief when Yuu manages to beat back his weariness for a little bit longer.

"Good, Yuu, good," he says softly, pushing Yuu's sweaty bangs off his face. "That's good. Jus' stay focused on me."

The other Exorcist's teeth are chattering but when Lavi tries to rearrange them so that he can warm Yuu up a bit, Yuu damn near howls at him to stay back.

"All right," Lavi concedes, pushing Yuu's fringe back again and again and watching as it begins to lull Yuu's body into a state of calm. He can see that Yuu is also moving into a state of awareness and takes it as a good sign. "Just a little bit longer, Yuu, and then ya can sleep."

And finally Yuu does come back down to him. He takes Lavi's hand again and presses their linked knuckles to his forehead again and eventually falls asleep like that.

With a sigh, Lavi untangles their limbs but is careful to keep their joined hands where Yuu wants them. He manages to get into a crouch and Yuu pitches forward without his support. Cursing, Lavi catches him and somehow keeps him balanced while he slips one legs behind Yuu and slides in behind him. Once comfortable, he guides Yuu back against him then takes his Exorcist jacket, which Yuu had thrown off at some point, and drapes it over the both of them.

"I'll stay," he murmurs, pulling Yuu to him tighter and feeling the Japanese teen's head loll against his shoulder. "Just sleep, Yuu. I'll stay."

* * *

When an hour has passed, Lavi rouses Yuu and coaxes him into nibbling a little more at the saltine cracks and having a few sips of the apple juice. Yuu manages a sleepy grumble but does as he's told, eyes closed and head nodding. Lavi gently taps his cheek more than once to stir him again.

"Almost done," he reassures, wishing now that he'd brought a straw along with the apple juice when he sees Yuu struggle with it. "And then ya can sleep again. But not here."

Yuu hums and nods tiredly. He pushes the apple juice away and shakes his head back and forth when Lavi tries to get him to have a little more. When Lavi finally concedes defeat, Yuu exhales and leans his head against the tiled wall.

"Not here, Yuu-chan, remember?" Lavi teases.

He drags Yuu to his feet and keeps him pressed up against his side. He bends them precariously, attempting to fetch his jacket from the bathroom floor, but pulls up quickly when Yuu threatens to topple out of his grip. He shifts so that their hipbones aren't bumping uncomfortably and they start the slow trek into the main cabin.

"All right," Lavi groans as he sets Yuu down on the bunk bed. He tries to guide Yuu to lie back but the reaction he gets reminds him of the small 6 year old girl he'd seen last week trying to wash her pet cat. It was all claws and yowling and displeasure and water had splashed everywhere and the poor girl had almost dropped the panicked animal a multitude of times.

It is like that now. Yuu claws at his upper arms and engages his abdominal muscles to stop Lavi from laying him back. Lavi starts at first, and Yuu rears up, but then Lavi recovers and easily overpowers the other Exorcist.

"Relax, Yuu," he says with a frown. "Chill out, yeah? Everything's fine, Yuu-Chan."

Yuu shakes his head. "Sick, sick, sick," he warns, choking the word out as he squeezes his eyes shut and inhales sharply through his nose.

Lavi quickly tugs him upright and keeps his hands on Yuu's shoulders until the Japanese Exorcist stops swallowing thickly and forces his eyes open. He breathes out steadily and nods slowly at Lavi.

"What about on ya side?"

Yuu shakes his head and with a tired exhalation, rests his head on Lavi's shoulder. "Makes my head spin…" he murmurs.

So Lavi tries to get him lie on his front but unhappy-wet-cat-Yuu rears his head again and panic is etched into the creases of Yuu's frown.

"With you," Yuu says, gulping down air as he writhes in Lavi's grip and tries to push his chest up from the mattress. "Better with you. The b-bath - _shit_." He gags badly, eyes watering and fits clenching in the sheets. "Lavi," he gasps, before his body seizes again and he gags so hard, the exertion makes his eyes roll back for a moment.

Lavi swears and swings himself in behind Yuu again. He pulls him to his chest and shimmies back so that he can rest his own back against the wall. He has to slouch to avoid hitting his head on the top bunk but Yuu is shaking like a leaf against him and a bump to the head is the least of his worries right now.

* * *

The Finders find them like that well into the middle of the night. The train will pull in at Berlin in the morning and from there it's a final train to London and home. Lavi smiles sheepishly at them and tries to shake out his left leg. It's gone completely numb and Yuu has become somewhat of a deadweight.

"Uhh…" Lavi begins awkwardly, realising how it must look with the cold bastard Kanda Yuu curled in to the heartless Bookman Junior's chest, head tucked under his chin and legs tangled. "Hey?"

"M-Master Lavi," one of them begins, blinking owlishly. It's Yuu's Finder though, so his brow immediately crumples with concern as he asks about the Japanese Exorcist's condition.

"He's very delirious," Lavi admits with a laugh. "D'ya think Yuu-Chan'd be so cuddly if he was in 'is right mind?"

The Finders laugh quietly, looking somewhat relieved to know that the two Exorcists haven't lost their minds.

"Is there anything we can assist with?"

Lavi looks thoughtfully down at Yuu's face. His lashes look especially long and dark now that all the colour has been sapped from Yuu's cheeks. His lips are chapped and his hair is a bit of tangled mess, but he's breathing easy and he's calm and he's finally able to rest. Lavi smiles slowly, the memory imprinted easily, and knows that while he'll tease Yuu for it relentlessly - though not too harshly because Yuu _had_ been really, really ill - it'll also become a private, treasured moment.

"Nah," Lavi replies at last, leaning his head back against the wall. He uses his right foot to drag the blankets up towards them, then bends over Yuu awkwardly to seize them and tug them up and over the two of them. He grins widely at the Finders. "We're all good here. Go, be free, young ones," he teases dramatically. "I told Yuu I'd stay, so I'll stay."

Once they leave, most likely to go to the cabin that Lavi's Finder had requested upon their arrival, Lavi drops the facade and looks at Yuu again. This time, when he studies and memorises the other Exorcist's features, he makes sure to do so thoroughly as he has been trained. Really, he thinks, the words 'I'll stay' are so strange coming from the mouth of a Bookman. They never stay, never have reason to. But now, as Lavi realises that not only are he and Yuu breathing in sync, the pace of their heartbeats have also matched up, now he thinks that he might. And maybe Yuu's figuring shit out for himself as well, because not once tonight did he push him away with his usual violent, cold affair.

"Hey, Yuu?" he asks quietly, trying to shake out his left leg again. "The crazy thing this war is doing to all of us… Disciples of God. Soldiers for the Lord. Predestined. Godforsaken…" He taps a thumb against Yuu's exposed collarbone. "Don't worry," he whispers when Yuu shudders against him. "I'll stay."

This time, the words have meaning. This time, they don't sound so empty.

This time, Lavi thinks he may not be making false promises.


End file.
